Thursday, November 29, 2012

ABC8:00 Last Man Standing #29 "Mother Fracker"8:30 Malibu Country #5 "Not with My Daughter"9:00 Shark Tank (REPEAT)10:00 20/20
ABC is mostly new on Friday night except for Shark Tank. I think the comedies could be up week to week as they held steady during the Friday of Thanksgiving weekend.Prediction: Last Man - 7.3 million, 1.6/Malibu - 6.9 million, 1.5/2020 - 5.4 million, 1.3

CBS8:00 Undercover Boss9:00 CSI: NY #189 "Blood Out"10:00 Blue Bloods #52 "Higher Education"
CBS is all new with its regular lineup which I think will be close to the last time they all aired two weeks ago.Prediction: Boss - 9.5 million, 1.9/CSI NY - 9.7 million, 1.4/Bloods - 10.7 million, 1.5

Christmas specials were a big part of Wednesday night and did well as they did on Tuesday. On ABC, the classic A Charlie Brown Christmas did well as usual. It's amazing that a special from decades ago that is so readily available anywhere at any time still pulls such great live numbers.At 9pm, Modern Family was up a tenth in viewers and the demo. Suburgatory followed and was down four tenths in viewers but up a tenth in the demo. Retention isn't nearly as strong as I thought it would be and this seemed like a much stronger show when it was at 8:30pm. At 10pm, Nashville was down two tenths in viewers and even in the demo. NBC got good mileage out of its annual Rockefeller Center and SNL Christmas specials.

On CBS, everything was up from last week's Thanksgiving Eve airings. Survivor was up a million viewers and four tenths in the demo. Criminal Minds was up nine tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo. This show is quietly not doing nearly as well this year. At 10pm, CSI was
up 1.3 million viewers and two tenths in the demo, tying a season high.
This show continues to shine at 10pm and is in many ways, CBS's
strongest show on the night even with lower raw numbers. The X Factor was up nine tenths in viewers and seven tenths in the demo from the Thanksgiving Eve numbers.

ABC8:00 Last Resort #8 "Big Chicken Dinner"9:00 Grey's Anatomy #179 "I Was Made for Lovin' You"10:00 Scandal #14 "Defiance"
ABC is all new. It seems like everything is going up this week so I could see all three shows being up a bit.Prediction: Resort - 6.1 million, 1.4/Grey's - 9.5 million, 3.4/Scandal - 6.2 million, 2.1

CBS8:00 The Big Bang Theory #120 "The Parking Spot Escalation"8:30 Two and a Half Men #210 "I Scream When I Pee"9:00 Person of Interest #31 "Til Death"10:00 Elementary #8 "The Long Fuse"
CBS is all new with its regular lineup. If the upward trend of the week hits The Big Bang Theory, it could conceivably hit a 6.0 in the demo. Also it will be interesting to see if Agnus T. Jones' outburst will drive any interest to Two and a Half Men or if people will agree with him and turn off the "filth." I think the dramas will be close to their regular numbers.Prediction: Big Bang - 17.8 million, 5.9/Men - 14.3 million, 4.3/Person - 14.2 million, 3.1/Elementary - 10.5 million, 2.8

FOX8:00 The X Factor9:00 Glee #74 "Thanksgiving"
FOX is all new and the numbers will of course be way up from last week's Thanksgiving numbers, at least for Glee.Prediction: X Factor - 9.8 million, 2.9/Glee - 5.9 million, 2.2

The upward trend from Monday continued for most shows on Tuesday night. ABC had holiday specials at 8pm and the newer Shrek the Halls actually out-rated the classic How the Grinch Stole Christmas. At 9pm, the season finale of a down year for Dancing with the Stars was up 3.7 million viewers and a full tenth in the demo for an easy season high though the finale was down big year-to-year. This show needs a rest but it looks like ABC will go forward with a 16th edition in March.

On CBS, NCIS benefited in a big way from not competing with another older skewing favorite - Dancing with the Stars. It was up 3.3 million viewers and a huge six tenths in the demo for its best performance since October 2. NCIS: Los Angeles did not benefit much from the much better lead-in as it was down six tenths in viewers but up a tenth in the demo. At 10pm, Vegas had to face the final hour of Dancing and it felt the effects as it was down seven tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo.

NBC's entire lineup was up week to week despite tougher competition on ABC. At 8pm, The Voice was up 2.1 million viewers and four tenths in the demo as it didn't have to face Dancing with the Stars. At 9pm, Go On was up a tenth in viewers and four tenths in the demo for its best performance since October 9. The New Normal was down three tenths in viewers but up two tenths in the demo. This show really isn't working here. At 10pm, Parenthood was down a tenth in viewers but up a tenth in the demo.

FOX was up too but the numbers were still bad. At 8pm, Raising Hope was up three tenths in viewers and the demo, tying a season high. At 8:30pm, Ben and Kate was up four tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo. New Girl followed and was even in viewers but up three tenths in the demo. It couldn't beat Go On however in the 9pm comedy battle. At 9:30pm, The Mindy Project was up two tenths in viewers and the demo. In many ways, the seeming DOA Ben and Kate is actually doing better than The Mindy Project and its better lead-in.

It was a good night for the broadcast networks as every show was up from their last episode. On CBS, a repeat of The Big Bang Theory in the old Partners time slot seemed to propel the entire night upward and it got amazing numbers for a repeat.To start the night off, How I Met Your Mother was up 1.2 million viewers and four tenths in the demo for its best numbers since October 1. The three shows that followed the Big Bang repeat hit season highs as 2 Broke Girls and Mike & Molly were both up a big 2 million viewers and seven tenths in the demo. At 10pm, Hawaii Five-0 was up 1.3 million viewers and a tenth in the demo.

Over on NBC, The Voice was up 1.6 million viewers and half a demo
point. I'm not sure how to explain each show being up week to week but
it's a good thing for the broadcast networks. The fall finale of Revolution
followed and it was up 1.5 million viewers and three tenths in the demo
for its best performance since October 25. This is ending the fall run
on a good note but how will things go when it comes back on March 25?
Will it survive and thrive because it will have The Voice as a lead-in again or will it go the way of shows like FlashForward and The Event? It will be very interesting to see.

Over on ABC, the final performance night of Dancing with the Stars was up 2 million viewers and three tenths in the demo for an easy Monday high. Specials of Extreme Makeover: Home Edition did very little at 9pm & 10pm showing that ABC made a good choice in cancelling this show. Finally FOX kept the good news coming as Bones was up nine tenths in viewers and four tenths in the demo for a season high and The Mob Doctor was up eight tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo for its best number since the second episode.

ABC8:00 A Charlie Brown Christmas (SPECIAL)9:00 Modern Family #81 "When a Tree Falls"9:30 Suburgatory #28 "Friendship Fish"10:00 Nashville #7 "Lovesick Blues"
ABC is starting the night with A Charlie Brown Christmas which does well every single year so that should continue. It is followed by Modern Family and Suburgatory which I could see being up and that might extend to Nashville as well if Charlie Brown lights up the whole night.Prediction: Family - 12.4 million, 4.9/Suburgatory - 7.8 million, 2.8/Nashville - 6.4 million, 2.0

NBC8:00 Christmas in Rockefeller Center (SPECIAL)9:00 SNL Christmas Special (SPECIAL)
NBC has two holiday specials. The Rockefeller special should do decently even against Charlie Brown on ABC but I don't think they'll get much mileage from the SNL special which has aired for a couple years now.

FOX8:00 The X Factor
FOX is all new with The X Factor and I think it'll be up from last week's Thanksgiving eve showing.Prediction: Factor - 8.0 million, 2.8

Sunday night brought some return to normalcy after the Thanksgiving holiday. On ABC, America's Funniest Home Videos was down half a million viewers and even in the demo. Once Upon a Time recovered nicely from its odd drop in its last airing as it was even in viewers but up four tenths in the demo. Bad news came at 9pm though where Revenge was down eight tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo for a season low despite the lead in being up nicely. This is a rough drop for the show and sort of defies explanation just like Once two weeks ago. At 10pm, the cancelled 666 Park Avenue was even in viewers and the demo.CBS didn't have a football overrun so numbers were close to two weeks ago. At 7pm, 60 Minutes was of course down big from its football-fueled lead-in last week. At 8pm, The Amazing Race was even in viewers and up a tenth in the demo. At 9pm, The Good Wife was
down four tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo for a season low.
This show seems to be getting on shakier and shakier ground despite the
critical acclaim. At 10pm, The Mentalist was up a big 2.1 million viewers and four tenths in the demo from last week when it started at 10:53pm.

On NBC, a Giants blowout win was up seven tenths in the demo from last
week's Steelers-Ravens game. On FOX, an NFL lead-in boosted the animated
lineup as The Simpsons was up a big 2.4 million viewers and nine tenths in the demo, Bob's Burgers was up eight tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo, and Family Guy was up seven tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo. However, a special airing of The Cleveland Show at 9:30pm disappointed and was down from last week's American Dad! despite a better lead-in.

ABC8:00 How the Grinch Stole Christmas (SPECIAL)8:30 Shrek the Halls (SPECIAL)9:00 Dancing with the Stars (15th Edition Finale)
ABC has Christmas specials at 8pm which are reliable holiday performers. They lead into the two hour finale of the All Star edition of Dancing with the Stars. It should easily pull a season high especially since it's not competing with The Voice at all on this night.Prediction: Dancing - 15.7 million, 2.6

NBC8:00 The Voice9:00 Go On #10 "Back, Back, Back... It's Gone"9:30 The New Normal #10 "The XY Factor"10:00 Parenthood #62 "You Can't Always Get What You Want"
NBC is all new but I think it could be down across the board for them because The Voice had been dropping and the rest of the night is facing the Dancing finale which could still be strong even though it's no longer dominant.Prediction: Voice - 9.1 million, 3.3/Go On - 5.8 million, 2.0/Normal - 4.2 million, 1.4/Parenthood - 4.4 million, 1.6

Monday, November 26, 2012

ABC8:00 Dancing with the Stars9:00 Extreme Makeover: Home Edition (SPECIAL)
ABC is all new starting with a one hour edition of Dancing with the Stars ahead of the finale on Tuesday. I think it'll be up even though it is just in the 8pm hour. A special of former show Extreme Makeover: Home Edition follow and I think they'll do decently but maybe skew old.Prediction: Dancing - 15.0 million, 2.5/Home Edition - 9.3 million, 1.9

CBS8:00 How I Met Your Mother #168 "Twelve Horny Women"8:30 The Big Bang Theory #104 "The Rothman Disintegration" (REPEAT)9:00 2 Broke Girls #32 "And the Egg Special"9:30 Mike & Molly #55 "Mike Likes Briefs"10:00 Hawaii Five-0 #55 "Wahine'inoloa"
CBS is all new except for the 8:30pm slot formerly occupied by Partners. A repeat of The Big Bang Theory should do better than last week's Two and a Half Men repeat and that, plus no Dancing with the Stars in the hour, could help the 9pm comedies. No competition from Castle couldhelp Hawaii Five-0 at 10pm.Prediction: Mother - 8.0 million, 3.0/Girls - 9.9 million, 3.6/Mike&Molly - 9.5 million, 3.0/Hawaii - 9.3 million, 2.3

NBC8:00 The Voice10:00 Revolution #10 "Nobody's Fault But Mine"
NBC has The Voice at 8pm. I could see it being down week to week as seems to be the trend once the live shows begin. At 10pm is the fall finale of Revolution, which won't return until the end of March. I think it could be up week to week before its long winter's nap.Prediction: Voice - 10.0 million, 3.5/Revolution - 7.3 million, 2.8

FOX8:00 Bones #150 "The But in the Joke"9:00 The Mob Doctor #8 "Game Changers"
FOX is all new with its regular lineup. I think we'll see similar numbers to last week.Prediction: Bones - 7.3 million, 2.0/Doctor - 3.0 million, 0.8

ABC 1993-94 SEASONABC had a few of the biggest hits on TV headed into the 1993-94 season (Roseanne, Home Improvement) but they were thin on returning shows as only three returned from the previous season: the hit Hangin' with Mr. Cooper, the low-rated Where I Live, and the filler newsmagazine Day One. Additionally, they had cancelled a few long running shows including The Wonder Years, Doogie Howser MD, and Life Goes On. ABC launched a whopping 11 new shows in the fall and they got a few hits including their first successful drama in years with the gritty NYPD Blue.Mondays(Sep 13-Jan 3)8:00 Day One9:00 Monday Night Football

(Jan 10-May 16)8:00 Day One9:00 Monday Night MovieAfter the cancellation of MacGyver, ABC first tried scripted programming as a lead-in to Monday Night Football but then when The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles didn't work, ABC went with unscripted programming. This year they tried the newsmagazine Day One. It managed to stay in the slot all year but the ratings were not strong. Monday Night Football continued to dominate and be replaced at midseason by a movie.Tuesdays8:00 Full House8:30 Phenom9:00 Roseanne9:30 Coach10:00 NYPD Blue

"Phenom"

"NYPD Blue"

ABC's Tuesday lineup was the same all year and for good reason as it was mostly successful. The long running Full House continued as the lead-off show and it was paired with the new Phenom about a teenage tennis prodigy and her family. The show starred Judith Light, who had a long Tuesday run on ABC with Who's the Boss?, and William Devane. The show was hot out of the gate in the ratings but it lost steam as the season went on and ABC ultimately determined it wasn't retaining enough of the Full House audience and didn't get the numbers necessary for perhaps the cushiest slot on TV. The show ran for a full 22 episodes but was cancelled at the end of the season. Phenom was followed by the power hour of Roseanne and Coach which remained two of the top shows on TV. Coach is an interesting show from the era for ABC. It consistently placed in the top 10 when it was paired with Roseanne but always struggled when it was left to its own devices. At the same time, Roseanne could never find a very compatible lead-out besides Coach. It was almost as if the two shows needed each other. It had been years since ABC had a successful drama. They had had critically acclaimed dramas such as thirtysomething, Homefront, and China Beach, no drama had placed in the Top 20 since Moonlighting in the 1987-88 season. But they finally found a new hit drama with the gritty and controversial Steven Bochco drama NYPD Blue. The show began its legendary run as ABC's longest running drama with a good deal of controversy surrounding the pilot and its standards-pushing use of nudity. 57 ABC affiliates preempted the series premiere but when the show became a big hit with critical acclaim, they dropped their opposition for ratings glory. It only had star David Caruso for this first season before he left in pursuit of a film career (only to end up back on TV in the long running CSI: Miami) but the show was really about the ensemble in general and Dennis Franz in particular. The show has not been a huge hit in syndication but at the time, it redefined the police drama genre in the same way Bochco's Hill Street Blues had years earlier.Wednesdays(Sep 29-Dec 15)8:00 Thea8:30 Joe's Life9:00 Home Improvement9:30 Grace Under Fire10:00 Moon Over Miami (through Dec 1)

Wednesday nights were busy and all over the place for ABC as they tried to find compatible surrounding shows for their top comedy and anchor of the night, Home Improvement. Improvement had become TV's number one scripted show and at the beginning of the season, they surrounded it with all new shows. Two family comedies opened the evening - Thea starring comedienne Thea Vidale and a young Brandy Norwood and Joe's Life, starring Peter Onorati and Mary Page Keller. Both shows were pretty generic and managed to last several months but were cancelled at midseason as they weren't any better than the cancelled The Wonder Years and Doogie Howser MD. The most successful ABC entry of the season came in the great timeslot after Home Improvement - Grace Under Fire became their next hit sitcom as the Missouri set family sitcom featured brassy comedienne Brett Butler and its blue collar feel fit in nicely with Improvement and Roseanne. The show was the top new comedy on any network for the 1993-94 season. At 10pm wasthe odd dramedy Moon Over Miami starring Bill Campbell and Ally Walker. The show followed a private detective and runaway bride and featured lots of jazz music. The show couldn't connect with viewers and the upscale tone seemed like an odd fit out of the blue collar comedies. It was cancelled by early December. When Joe's Life was cancelled, it was briefly replaced by George which had a short and unsuccessful Saturday run. ABC gave George Foreman a chance on Wednesdays but the results weren't any better. In January, ABC added two new shows - the animated sitcom The Critic at 8:30pm. Using the voice talents of Jon Lovitz, this was one of several attempts over the years by networks not named FOX to make animated sitcoms work. It was a cult favorite but not a ratings winner. It was cancelled and picked up by, you guessed it, FOX. At 10pm, ABC tried another new drama in Birdland, a medical drama starring Brian Dennehy. It lasted a mere five episodes in this Wednesday slot, less than Moon Over Miami. When ABC cancelled Thea, they chose to use repeats of Home Improvement in the 8pm slot for the rest of the season. While it was a better lead-in than anything else, ABC was criticized for too often double pumping the popular Improvement. ABC added two new sitcoms towards the end of the season. Sandwiched between repeats and new episodes of Improvement was Thunder Alley, a family comedy about a retired race car driver starring Ed Asner. The family friendly sitcom fit nicely with Home Improvement and was a big hit in its midseason run. ABC chose to put Grace Under Fire on a temporary hiatus to use one of its best slots on another new show - These Friends of Mine. The ensemble comedy starring Ellen DeGeneres did well enough in a late spring run to get a second season where it was renamed Ellen and later became one of the most groundbreaking sitcoms of all time. After the cancellation of Birdland, ABC devoted 10pm to yet another newsmagazine, its fourth during the week. Turning Point featured a rotation of ABC anchors and was another cheap option when the dramas were failing. But by spring of 1994, newsmagazines aired Mondays at 8 and Wednesdays-Fridays at 10. Still, ABC chose to renew it as it was always a cheap option.Thursdays(Sep 23-Feb 17)8:00 Missing Persons9:00 Matlock10:00 Primetime Live

(Mar 3-May 5)8:00 The Byrds of Paradise9:00 Matlock10:00 Primetime Live

"The Byrds of Paradise"

ABC had a pretty steady lineup on Thursdays this season with two failed shows in the 8pm hour, the long running Matlock at 9pm, and successful newsmagazine Primetime Live at 10pm. Matlock and Primetime Live were an option for older viewers against NBC's hip and popular Thursday lineup and they held up pretty well against the competition. The 8pm hour had trouble though. It began with Missing Persons, a Chicago-set crime drama about a Missing Persons unit starring Daniel J. Travanti. Travanti's return to television after Hill Street Blues was not nearly as successful and it was pulled after 15 episodes. It was replaced by The Byrds of Paradise, a family drama set in Hawaii and starring Timothy Busfield and a young Jennifer Love Hewitt and Seth Green. The show had its fans among critics but it only lasted 12 episodes and was cancelled at the end of the season, laying the path for Love Hewitt to skyrocket to fame on FOX's Party of Five.Fridays(Sep 24-Mar 25)8:00 Family Matters8:30 Boy Meets World9:00 Step by Step9:30 Hangin' with Mr. Cooper10:00 20/20

ABC's TGIF lineup was much improved from the previous year thanks to a successful newcomer and a successful transplant from Tuesday nights. Family Matters remained the 8pm anchor and Step by Step was the 9pm anchor and the highest rated show of the pack. Both shows really served as important cornerstones to the mid 1990s incarnation of this lineup. At 8:30pm, ABC found success with a new entry - Boy Meets World - starring Ben Savage, brother of The Wonder Years' Fred Savage, as a jr high student. The show was very popular with young fans at the time and still has quite a loyal following today from kids of the era (so much so that Disney Channel is currently in talks to reboot the show). At 9:30pm, ABC moved Hangin' with Mr. Cooper over from Tuesday. Though the ratings dropped from its very cushy timeslot, it seemed like a better fit with the TGIF block than the Tuesday comedy block. Though it was popular at the time, it hasn't had the lasting power that the other shows in the block had. Its season ended a bit early to make room for Sister, Sister, a Detroit-set family sitcom starring real life identical twins Tia and Tamera Mowry. The show seemed tailor-made for this lineup but it struggled to keep the same audience that Mr. Cooper did. It was renewed though but as a midseason replacement for the 1994-95 season. Veteran newsmagazine 20/20 continued to occupy the 10pm slot as one of ABC's many newsmagazines.Saturdays(Sep 25-Oct 30)8:00 Saturday Night Movie10:00 The Commish

(Nov 6-20)8:00 George8:30 Where I Live9:00 The Paula Poundstone Show (Nov 6 only)10:00 The Commish

(Dec 4-May 14)8:00 Saturday Night Movie10:00 The Commish

"George"

Saturday nights were a problem for ABC as they usually were. ABC delayed most of its fall lineup until November and aired a movie from 8-10pm instead along with a full season of The Commish at 10pm.The Commish defied most ABC Saturday issues in the 1990s by having a nice run on the night. When the lineup premiered on November 6, it was an instant flop. George, starring George Foreman and Where I Live, a narrowly renewed sitcom lasted only three weeks on Saturday nights before being pulled. George resurfaced briefly on Wednesdays while Live never aired its remaining episodes. However, they were more successful than ABC's biggest flop of the year - The Paula Poundstone Show, a variety entry starring the comic. The show aired a sneak preview at 10pm on October 30 but lasted a mere one episode in its regular timeslot before an immediate cancellation. When this comedy lineup faltered so quickly, ABC decided not to reboot the night and instead just air a movie for the rest of the season.Sundays7:00 America's Funniest Home Videos7:30 America's Funniest People8:00 Lois & Clark9:00 Sunday Night Movie

"Lois & Clark"

ABC Sundays stayed exactly the same all year. America's Funniest Home Videos and America's Funniest People had made the move to the 7pm hour the previous March and stayed there this week. They were far removed from being instant hits but Videos was still posting respectable numbers. People was cancelled at the end of the year in favor of more editions of Videos. After all, they were basically the same show. At 8pm was an ambitious new drama - Lois & Clark, a reimagining of the Superman tale starring Dean Cain and Teri Hatcher. The show was a hit with fanboys and girls but struggled to find a mass audience. Still, it was an improvement over previous Sunday drama Life Goes On and it had a real devoted following so it got a renewal. It still remains a popular entry in the Superman lore even if it has been somewhat overshadowed by the more adored Smallville that followed. At 9pm all season was a movie as usual.ABC 1993-94 StatsShows in the Top 302. Home Improvement4. Roseanne5. Grace Under Fire6. Coach8. Monday Night Football12. Thunder Alley15. 20/2016. Full House17. Primetime Live18. NYPD Blue20. Turning Point27. Phenom30. Sunday Night Movie/Family MattersFall Shows Survival: 4/11 (36%)NYPD Blue, Boy Meets World, Lois & Clark, Grace Under FireMidseason Shows Survival: 4/7 (57%)Turning Point, Thunder Alley, These Friends of Mine (Ellen), Sister SisterTotal New Shows Survival Rate: 8/18 (44%)Cancelled/Ended SeriesAmerica's Funniest People/Dinosaurs (4 seasons, Dinosaurs aired in Summer 1994)Where I Live (2 seasons)Phenom/Thea/Moon Over Miami/Missing Persons/Joe's Life/The Paula Poundstone Show/George/Birdland/The Critic/The Byrds of Paradise (1 season)Emmy Award Nominees & Winners (Major Categories)NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Drama Series)Home Improvement (Nominee, Outstanding Comedy Series)David Caruso, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series)Dennis Franz, NYPD Blue (WINNER, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Drama Series)John Goodman, Roseanne (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series)Roseanne Barr, Roseanne (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series)Patricia Richardson, Home Improvement (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series)Gordon Clapp, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series)Nicholas Turturro, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series)Amy Brenneman, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series)Gail O'Grady, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series)Sharon Lawrence, NYPD Blue (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series)Jerry Van Dyke, Coach (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Comedy Series)Shelley Fabares, Coach (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)Sara Gilbert, Roseanne (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)Laurie Metcalf, Roseanne (WINNER, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)

ABC7:00 America's Funniest Home Videos8:00 Once Upon a Time #30 "Into the Deep"9:00 Revenge #30 "Lineage"10:00 666 Park Avenue #8 "Whatever Happened to Baby Jane?"
ABC's lineup is all new Sunday after taking a break for the American Music Awards. Last we saw Once Upon a Time, it had taken a huge fall but I think it will recover some and the following shows including the cancelled 666 Park Avenue may follow suit.Prediction: Videos - 6.8 million, 1.5/Time - 9.3 million, 2.9/Revenge - 7.8 million, 2.6/Park - 4.0 million, 1.3

CBS7:00 60 Minutes8:00 The Amazing Race9:00 The Good Wife #77 "A Defense of Marriage"10:00 The Mentalist #103 "Black Cherry"
CBS is all new with no NFL overrun. That means 60 Minutes will certainly be down and The Mentalist will certainly be up while the in-between shows will probably close to last week.Prediction: 60 Mins - 11.7 million, 1.7/Race - 9.8 million, 2.6/Wife - 9.5 million, 1.7/Mentalist - 9.8 million, 1.8

NBC7:00 Football Night in America8:30 Sunday Night Football: Green Bay at NY Giants
NBC has a marquee Sunday night matchup between two popular teams. I think it will be up significantly from last week's Ravens-Steelers game.

Friday, November 23, 2012

The versatile and talented Larry Hagman died today at the age of 81 from throat cancer. Hagman was the son of famed actress Mary Martin and had a long and very successful career in television. He was first known as Major Anthony Nelson, the harried and manic master of Jeannie on the classic 1960s sitcom I Dream of Jeannie. The show was never a major hit in its day but has lived on for decades in syndication. For a lot of people, that could be their best known role but Hagman became iconic as the sinister oilman JR Ewing on the long running primetime soap Dallas from 1978-1991. Hagman's portrayal of JR is one of the most memorable roles of all time and his hard living during that era only further added to the legend.

Hagman had a couple unsuccessful series too including the sitcom Here We Go Again (1973) and drama Orleans (1997) but he came back to the forefront of pop culture just this year in TNT's highly praised reboot of Dallas where he put the cowboy hat back on as JR. Hagman was widely praised in this revival and was in the middle of filming the second season when he died.

To see my Weekend Rewind on I Dream of Jeannie from March 2011, click here.

It was another rough Tuesday for the broadcast networks. Maybe some of it can be chalked up to Thanksgiving week but this is also just a weak night for the broadcast networks. ABC started with Dancing with the Stars which was one of the few shows to go up, it was up nine tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo ahead of next week's finale. At 9pm though, Happy Endings was even in viewers but down two tenths in the demo to a very low 1.1 while Don't Trust the B---- in Apartment 23 was even worse. It was down a tenth in viewers and two tenths in the demo to a terrible 0.9. I'm not a fan of quick hooks usually but ABC needs to pull this lineup. At 10pm, Private Practice was up half a million viewers and two tenths in the demo from last week's series low.

Over on CBS, NCIS started off the night down six tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo for a season low. At 9pm, NCIS: Los Angeles was
down seven tenths in viewers but even in the demo. Its retention from
its parent show has been especially strong lately. Maybe CBS will
finally trust it on its own next season? At 10pm, Vegas was down
three tenths in viewers but up two tenths in the demo for its best demo
performance since October 9. This is a positive sign for a show that has
been skewing older and older and saw its episode order trimmed by one.It won its timeslot among the broadcast networks for the first time in weeks.

NBC was down across the board. At 8pm, The Voice took a severe
drop like it did on Monday as it was down 1.7 million viewers and half a
demo point for a Tuesday season low. At 9pm, Go On was down a tenth in viewers and the demo. While tying a series low, the retention out of The Voice was much better this week so that's a positive note. At 9:30pm, The New Normal was
down four tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo for a series
low. This is doing worse than some of NBC's troubled Thursday sitcoms.
At 10pm, Parenthood did not win the hour again as it dropped two tenths in viewers and the demo.

FOX's comedy lineup was down nearly across the board as well as this lineup is really suffering. At 8pm, Raising Hope was down a tenth in viewers and the demo for season lows. At 8:30pm, Ben and Kate was dead even with last week. It was the only show in the bunch not to drop but the numbers are horrible. At 9pm, New Girl dropped three tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo to a series low. Perhaps the worst news came at 9:30pm where The Mindy Project fell
six tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo for a series low.
So, yes, both of FOX's new comedies are below 3 million viewers and a
1.4 demo. Yikes, even just a couple years ago those would have been
instant cancellation numbers.

On Monday night, CBS had its first Monday without the cancelled Partners but it didn't make much of a difference. At 8pm, How I Met Your Mother was down half a million viewers and a tenth in the demo. A repeat of Two and a Half Men was up from Partners' numbers last week. It did slightly help 2 Broke Girls which was up eight tenths in viewers and two tenths in the demo for its best numbers since October 15. At 9:30pm, Mike & Molly was up a tenth in viewers but down a tenth in the demo. At 10pm, Hawaii Five-0 was up a million viewers and a tenth in the demo for a season high. Of course a 2.2 demo is low compared to last year but it has slowly been recovering its audience from the 1.8 season premiere demo.

NBC saw a dramatic fall for The Voice which was down a million viewers and seven tenths in the demo for a season low on Monday. Like past years, it seems as though the actual "competition" once the blind auditions, battle rounds, etc are over means lower ratings. There was better news at 10pm though where Revolution was down a tenth in viewers but even in the demo despite a much lower lead-in. On ABC, both shows were up as Dancing with the Stars was up half a million viewers and three tenths in the demo in its penultimate week. At 10pm, Castle was up three tenths in viewers and a tenth in the demo. All three 10pm dramas were at least a 2.0 demo this week for the first time in awhile. On FOX, Bones was up a tenth in viewers and the demo while The Mob Doctor was up the same.

Sunday night brought a long but powerful NFL overrun on CBS. It led to each of the regular shows not starting till 53 minutes into the hour. 60 Minutes was up 2.6 million viewers and 1.4 demo points with the big lead-in. The Amazing Race was up four tenths in viewers but down a tenth in the demo. The Good Wife was up nine tenths in viewers and even in the demo. It seems to be consistent no matter when in the hour it starts. The Mentalist was the hardest hit of course as it didn't start until 10:53pm on the east coast. It was down 2.1 million viewers and half a demo point from when it started at 10pm last week. Over on ABC, America's Funniest Home Videos was up a million viewers and two tenths in the demo but the American Music Awards were down big year-to-year though up from ABC's usual Sunday numbers.

On NBC, a Steelers-Ravens matchup was strong but delivered the lowest numbers for Sunday Night Football
since Steelers-Bengals on October 21. FOX didn't have an NFL overrun so
numbers were down big from last week especially for the first couple
shows. But first at 7:30pm, The Cleveland Show was down seven tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo from the last time it aired two weeks ago. At 8pm, The Simpsons was down a big 1.8 million viewers and eight tenths in the demo from last week when it had a direct NFL lead-in. Bob's Burgers was down a million viewers and six tenths in the demo. Family Guy was down half a million viewers and a tenth in the demo from last week's 9pm episode while American Dad! was actually up two tenths in viewers and three tenths in the demo from the last time it aired two weeks ago.

ABC8:00 A Charlie Brown Thanksgiving (SPECIAL)9:00 Modern Family #73 "Bringing Up Baby" (REPEAT)9:30 Suburgatory #23 "Homecoming" (REPEAT)10:00 Private Practice #105 "The World According to Jake"
After several years of airing the sitcoms on Thanksgiving Eve, ABC will go with specials, repeats, and a special airing of Private Practice. Practice might actually do better than it does on Tuesday even with repeats as a lead-in.

NBC8:00 The Voice 9:00 Go On #9 "Dinner Takes All"9:30 The New Normal #9 "Pardon Me"10:00 Parenthood #61 "One More Weekend with You"
NBC is all new with its regular lineup. I think another week of results from The Voice could be down from last week which could push the comedies lower. I think Parenthood will win the hour again despite a sub-2 demo.Prediction: Voice - 10.8 million, 3.6/Go On - 5.9 million, 2.1/Normal - 4.4 million, 1.7/Parenthood - 5.0 million, 1.9

Monday, November 19, 2012

ABC8:00 Dancing with the Stars10:00 Castle #89 "After Hours"
ABC is all new with its regular lineup. I think we'll see similar results to last week.Prediction: Dancing - 13.6 million, 2.1/Castle - 10.4 million, 2.0

CBS8:00 How I Met Your Mother #167 "The Stamp Tramp"8:30 Two and a Half Men #202 "I Changed My Mind About the Milk" (REPEAT)9:00 2 Broke Girls #31 "And the Three Boys with Wood"9:30 Mike & Molly #54 "Thanksgiving is Cancelled"10:00 Hawaii Five-0 #54 "Ohuna"Partners is gone from the CBS lineup after its cancellation on Friday. In its place this week is a Two and a Half Men repeat which could honestly do better than the 1.8 Partners got last week. If that happens, the 9pm shows could rise.Prediction: Mother - 8.3 million, 3.1/Girls - 9.3 million, 3.3/Mike&Molly - 9.4 million, 3.1/Hawaii - 7.9 million, 2.0

NBC8:00 The Voice 10:00 Revolution #9 "Kashmir"
NBC is all new with another performance show from The Voice and Revolution. Revolution has been falling in recent weeks after a very strong start. I'm honestly not sure if it'll stop the bleeding this week or keep dropping. I could see it going either way.Prediction: Voice - 11.3 million, 4.2/Revolution - 7.0 million, 2.5

FOX8:00 Bones #149 "The Bod in the Pod"9:00 The Mob Doctor #7 "Turf War"
FOX is all new with its regular lineup. I think things will be low like last week. Will The Mob Doctor keep dropping to unthinkable lows?Prediction: Bones - 6.9 million, 1.8/Mob - 2.8 million, 0.7

Sunday, November 18, 2012

ABC 1992-93 SEASONHeading into the Fall of 1992, ABC
had mostly purged its lineup of the long-running series that defined the
mid-late 80s on the network. Who's the Boss?, Growing Pains, and MacGyver had all been cancelled while Perfect Strangers was held off until it was burned off in the summer of 1993. ABC had some new success stories, particularly Home Improvement, which was the biggest new series since Roseanne.
However, they really had no successful dramas on the air heading into
the season and the season as a whole didn't really bring any new hits to
ABC's lineup which meant all their existing shows were one year older.
That's never a recipe for success.Mondays(Sep 21-Nov 2)8:00 The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles (through Oct 12)9:00 Monday Night Football

(Jan 4-May 17)8:00 FBI: The Untold Stories8:30 American Detective9:00 Monday Night FootballABC cancelled the long running Monday Night Football companion MacGyver the previous season and attempted to pair football with a different drama. The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles
had only gotten moderate ratings the season before but the high profile
show got a second chance in the fall. However, the second chance didn't
last long and the show was yanked after four weeks and it didn't return
until March when it was benched to Saturdays. The drama was replaced by
low budget filler with the return of FBI: The Untold Stories and American Detective. Neither show did well enough to last another season however. As usual, ABC replaced football with the Monday Night Movie.Tuesdays(Sep 22-Nov 17)8:00 Full House8:30 Hangin' with Mr. Cooper9:00 Roseanne9:30 Coach10:00 Going to Extremes

Tuesdays
went through a lot of changes over the course of the season but only in
the 9:30pm and 10pm slots as the first three shows stayed the same all
year. At 8pm, Full House had made a very successful transition to
Tuesdays and landed among the Top 10 shows. It continued to be a
powerful lead-off to ABC's most successful night. At 8:30pm, they
launched the new Hangin' with Mr. Cooper which starred Mark Curry as a teacher and coach. The show did well with Full House but
seemed better fit for ABC's TGIF lineup on Fridays which is where it
moved the following season. It was one of the shows that had a
moderately successful run but never became a major player for ABC. At
9pm, Roseanne continued to dominate as it was fresh off of a #2
finish in the ratings and it finished in #2 yet again. At 9:30pm, ABC
started the season with the always reliable Roseanne companion, Coach. However, ABC was always looking to use Roseanne as a launching pad for new shows and they thought they found the perfect companion in The Jackie Thomas Show,
starring Roseanne's real life husband Tom Arnold and executive produced
by Roseanne. The show, about a nightclub comic starring in his own
fictional sitcom, was brassy and loud like the pair behind the camera.
The Arnolds used their considerable clout at the network to secure the
post-Roseanne slot and it paid off initially with huge ratings. But eventually it struggled to hold on to Roseanne's audience even though it still placed in the Top 20. Roseanne publicly threatened to leave ABC if they cancelled Thomas but
ABC called her bluff and cancelled it anyway. Roseanne and Tom Arnold
divorced not long after and Roseanne of course stayed with the network.
At the very end of the season, ABC gave Delta one more chance to find an audience after Roseanne but it was not meant to be for Delta Burke's sitcom. The 10pm slot had several different occupants. It started with Going to Extremes, a new medical drama about medical students learning the ropes on a tropical island (long before Off the Map had a similar premise in 2011). It didn't connect with audiences and swapped nights with Civil Wars before getting cancelled. Civil Wars was
given one more night to succeed in its second season but it couldn't
make Tuesday work. ABC replaced it with another failed second year drama
in Homefront which returned to its original timeslot the season
before for one final chance. Despite much critical love, it didn't do
enough to get a third season and ABC had now gone two straight seasons
of a revolving door in this slot since thirtysomething's cancellation.Wednesdays(Sep 23-Nov 18)8:00 The Wonder Years8:30 Doogie Howser MD9:00 Home Improvement9:30 Laurie Hill (Sep 30-Oct 28)10:00 Civil Wars

ABC made a very bold move with its comedies heading into the 1992 season. After one successful season sandwiched between Full House and Roseanne, ABC let Home Improvement fly
on its own by moving it to the pressure slot of 9pm Wednesdays and it
passed with flying colors. This has been a problem for many shows when
they were moved from a cozy timeslot but it didn't matter for Improvement,
which remained one of TV's top shows and greatly strengthened ABC's
Wednesday lineup. Earlier in the night was a pair of aging shows in
their final season. The Wonder Years had a critically acclaimed run but it was running out of gas. Doogie Howser MD was
one of ABC's moderate successes but it also was losing steam. Both
shows suffered from popular young leads who were growing up which can
sometimes lead to shows "jumping the shark." ABC actually pulled Doogie in March and burned it off over the summer but The Wonder Years was given enough notice to put together a memorable one hour finale in May. When Doogie was pulled, it was replaced by Home Free,
a family sitcom starring a young Matthew Perry. This show was actually a
vehicle for the young and upcoming Perry but it didn't work out and
Perry of course found superstardom a year and a half later when Friends launched. The 9:30pm post-Home Improvement slot was originally given to Laurie Hill, a family sitcom about a pediatrician featuring a young Ellen DeGeneres. From the creators of The Wonder Years, the show was critically panned and was one of the first cancellations of the season when it lost a huge part of Home Improvement's audience. It was replaced by Coach, which was moved on Tuesdays to make room for The Jackie Thomas Show. Coach was
always successful when paired with a powerful lead-in and it usually
did better than many other shows in that role but it could never be an
anchor show. At 10pm, ABC started with the second season of Civil Wars
which had narrowly snagged a renewal. It struggled in the Wednesday
slot and was sent to Tuesdays in January where it flipped with Going to Extremes. Fresh off a poor Tuesday showing, Extremes lasted only 3 episodes on Wednesday before being cancelled. ABC's last effort in the slot for the season was Sirens,
a Pittsburgh-set police drama about three female rookie cops. The show
was critically acclaimed but cancelled after its midseason run. However,
it was picked up in syndication where it aired for 22 more episodes.Thursdays(Sep 17-Dec 17)8:00 Delta8:30 Room for Two9:00 Homefront10:00 Primetime Live

(Jan 14-Feb 11)8:00 Matlock9:00 Jack's Place10:00 Primetime Live

(Feb 18-May 20)8:00 Matlock9:00 Misc. Programming10:00 Primetime Live

"Delta"

Thursday nights continued to be troublesome for ABC. They started by trying comedies at 8pm including the highly anticipated Delta starring Delta Burke as a country singer. Burke had just been on Designing Women for several years before a highly publicized departure and ABC thought audiences would follow her over to Delta especially with The Cosby Show no longer in the Thursday 8pm slot on NBC. Unfortunately, Delta flopped
and couldn't connect with audiences. It was pulled from the lineup in
December along with its companion, the second season of Room for Two. Room was
a top 10 show in its cozy timeslot the previous midseason but it
tumbled all the way to #79 without a comfortable timeslot. This was the
opposite of Home Improvement, a show that did great with a lead-in but stumbled when left to its own devices. At 9pm was season two of Homefront.
ABC wanted this show to work but, like so many period dramas, it
couldn't get a mass audience. It didn't helped that it faced off against
the final season of Cheers. After December, ABC scratched the whole 8-10pm slot and gave 8pm to Matlock
starring Andy Griffith, which it had picked up after it ran 6 seasons
on NBC. The old skewing show was a better option for Thursday 8pm than
comedies had been plus it had a built in audience so it became a rare
Thursday scripted show to be renewed by ABC. It was initially paired
with Jack's Place which had aired in the summer of 1992 and did
well enough to get a second season. In the tougher time of year, it
couldn't hack it. It was yanked in February and ABC spent the rest of
the year airing two hour episodes of Matlock, repeats of other shows, and specials. Throughout the year, Primetime Live continued to occupy the 10pm hour for ABC.Fridays(Sep 18-Feb 26)8:00 Family Matters8:30 Step by Step9:00 Dinosaurs9:30 Camp Wilder10:00 20/20

TGIF
was in place for 1992-93 but it wasn't dominant like in years past as
the 9pm hour really suffered with two different lineups. At 8pm all year
was ABC's strongest Friday show, Family Matters, in its prime. It was followed by Step by Step which was fresh off a successful first season. The problems came at 9pm though where they started with Dinosaurs.
This show always did better than you might think but it was clearly not
able to be an anchor. It hurt the new addition to the night - Camp Wilder. Wilder was
a family sitcom featuring Mary Page Keller, Jerry O'Connell, Jay Mohr,
and Hilary Swank, but it couldn't find an audience on Friday night. It
lasted 19 episodes but was pulled in February and never returned. Dinosaurs was moved to Sundays at that point too. In their place were two new freshman sitcoms. Getting By was
a family sitcom about two mothers - white (Cindy Williams) and black
(Telma Hopkins) and their teenage children all living together. It
didn't last on ABC but was renewed by NBC for a second season. Where I Live was
a Harlem-set family sitcom starring Doug E. Doug. The show did not do
well at all but was critically acclaimed for its realistic portrayal of
life in Harlem. Even Bill Cosby weighed in on the quality of the show
and that helped it get renewed for a season two where it only managed to
last a few episodes. Throughout the season, 20/20 continued to air at 10pm.Saturdays(Sep 26-Oct 31)8:00 Covington Cross9:00 Crossroads10:00 The Commish

Saturday
nights were problematic for ABC this season as they were most seasons.
ABC tried to begin the season with three straight dramas including two
brand new ones - British drama Covington Cross which took place during 14th Century England and Crossroads, a
family drama starring Robert Urich about a father and son traveling
cross country together. Both shows were pulled before November and were
two of ABC's lowest rated shows. Despite the poor lead-ins, ABC managed
to get decent numbers from The Commish in its second year in the
10pm slot. When the first two dramas were pulled, ABC aired a movie
until March when they made one more attempt with The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles.
When it didn't work here, the show that had many chances to succeed was
ultimately cancelled though they made four TV-movies in the next couple
years.Sundays(Sep 20-Feb 28)7:00 Life Goes On8:00 America's Funniest Home Videos8:30 America's Funniest People9:00 Sunday Night Movie

Sunday nights seemed to be getting progressively weaker year after year. ABC started the night with Life Goes On but
the family drama couldn't cheat death once again. Despite continued
letter writing from fans, it wasn't enough to save the show which was
truthfully lucky to run four seasons with its low ratings. At 8pm was
the hour of funny videos but they were getting progressively weaker each
year. After ABC pulled Life Goes On, they moved the videos to the 7pm hour and then they pulled America's Funniest People for the last two months of the season in favor of Dinosaurs, which had been moved from Fridays. Dinosaurs did
get a renewal, probably for syndication reasons, but its next season
didn't premiere until the summer of 1994, more than a year later. When
the videos shows moved to 7pm, ABC launched a new newsmagazine - Day One, hosted by Diane Sawyer and Forrest Sawyer (not related). The show joined 20/20 and Primetime Live in
an era where TV newsmagazines were becoming more and more common thanks
in part to how cheap they were to produce. Throughout the season, they
aired a movie at 9pm that usually did worse than a competing movie on
CBS but better than the one on NBC.ABC 1992-93 StatsShows in the Top 302. Roseanne3. Home Improvement6. Coach7. Monday Night Football10. Full House12. 20/2016. Hangin' with Mr. Cooper/The Jackie Thomas Show22. Primetime Live28. Sunday Night Movie/MatlockFall Shows Survival: 1/7 (14%)Hangin' with Mr. CooperMidseason Shows Survival: 2/6 (33%)Where I Live, Day OneTotal New Shows Survival Rate: 3/13 (23%)Cancelled/Ended SeriesPerfect Strangers (8 seasons, aired in Summer 1993)The Wonder Years (6 seasons)Doogie Howser MD/Life Goes On (4 seasons)American Detective (3 seasons)Homefront/FBI: The Untold Stories/Civil Wars/The Young Indiana Jones Chronicles/Room for Two/Jack's Place (2 seasons)Crossroads/Delta/Going to Extremes/Camp Wilder/Covington Cross/Laurie Hill/The Jackie Thomas Show/Getting By/Sirens/Home Free (1 season)Emmy Award Nominee & Winners (Major Categories)Homefront (Nominee, Outstanding Drama Series)Home Improvement (Nominee, Outstanding Comedy Series)Tim Allen, Home Improvement (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series)John Goodman, Roseanne (Nominee, Outstanding Lead Actor in a Comedy Series)Roseanne Arnold, Roseanne (WINNER, Outstanding Lead Actress in a Comedy Series)Chad Lowe, Life Goes On (WINNER, Outstanding Supporting Actor in a Drama Series)Kellie Martin, Life Goes On (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Drama Series)Laurie Metcalf, Roseanne (WINNER, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)Shelley Fabares, Coach (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)Sara Gilbert, Roseanne (Nominee, Outstanding Supporting Actress in a Comedy Series)